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Giants have genius in the outfield

Willie Mays’ fielding
just too good to be frue

_ The young man named Willie M
baseball — ‘and parts of two others — yet
legendary subjects for discussion: “Aw, that catch was

one .

genius in the game. Now when
you add to that gift — and his in-

spirational qualities — the fact
that in 1954 he led the National
League in batting, erashed 41

home runs and drove in 110 runs,
you can see the major reason why
the New York Giants moved from
a sorry fifth place finish in 1953
to the World Series championship
in 1954.

And also why Willie was the
overwhelming choice as the Na-
tional League’s Most Valuable
Player of the Year.

Mays is not a ballplayer who
turns in a journeyman job most
ofthetime and thenonceina while
makes a great play out ‘there in
eentrefield. The thing about him
is that day in and day out he does
something out of the ordinary,
whether it is readily recognized
from the stands or not — cutting
a double down to a single, keep-
ing a runner from taking an extra
base with fast fielding and the
deterrent power of his amazing
throwing arm...

But he also DOES make those
crowd-gasping plays.

Which have been his greatest?
“How about that catch of Vic

Lassooing baseballs

is one of Willie

NEW YORK
ays has played only one full season of major league
his defensive plays already have,become almost
nothing; you should of seen this

This is because Willie is, like Joe DiMaggio was before him, the greatest defensive

Mays’ favorite stunts.

Bert Whyte e

SPORTLIGHT

rowers, swapped boats and evel —
had the winning American eight —
as guests at an_ elaborate and.

HEN Len’ Johnson was in his
prime he was one of the
greatest middleweight boxers
England ever produced — but he
never held the British title, al-
though he fought and beat three
champions. The reason? At that
time Negroes weren’t allowed to
hold British titles. (This stupid
ruling has long since been chang-
ed).

Today Len Johnson is back in
the news again, for he is stand-
ing as Communist candidate in
this month’s local elections at
Moss Side East, Manchester.

Len is leading the fight for
more sports facilities for the
boys and girls who are his neigh-
bors. He is also demariding
emergency measures to solve the
acute housing problem in the
district, whitch is a small “united
nations” of Irish, Indians, Poles
and English, most of them living
in crowded lodgings at high
rents.

x x x

Avery Brundage, president of
the International Olympic Com-
mittee, is known throughout the
world of sport as a loud-mouthed
badger, genus’ Americanus, with
a penchani for redbaiting.

Precisely because Avery is the
kind of man he is, his article en-
titled, “I Must Admit—Russian
Athletes are Great!” in the April
30 issue of The Saturday Evening
Post has. created quite a furor
and has been widely quotéd.

Many newspapers reprinted
part of Brundage’s article, par-
ticularly stressing his concern for
the \growing “‘softness” of Ameri-

can athletes as compared to the.

friendly luncheon. Later, US.
Olympic officials were guests of
honor at a special dinner at the —
Soviet camp.
“Through the games, Russia!
athletes acted with perfect proP:
riety. They were modest winners
and gracious losers. Some said
it was a big propaganda show

- dictated by the Kremlin, If tha!

is so, the parts were well play
ed.”

Avery is learning, but slowly:
He still doesn’t entirely pelieve
what he sees with his own eye
—put at least he no longer 808
about wih his eyes shut, refus
ing to look. ;
’When Avery Brundage “geceph
ed an invitation to visit the So
viet Union he planned fo stay
only three days, but the visit
stretched to three weeks.
more American sportsmen who
follow in his footsteps, the
ter it. will be for the causé of
world peace, international good
will and friendly sports comP i
tion.

* x *

‘A number of readers (2) have
asked me to name the hone
that will ‘finish 1-2-3-4 in the

‘Kentucky Derby this saturday

‘em like We?
, ave
$18,

ge

If I could pick
chums, our paper wouldn
to worry about raising
every year to keep the pre

rolling. $

: : e-
Time magazine reported r

Wertz' drive in the first game husky, healthy boys and girls cently that during the Lop
of last year’s World Series? This, {joined the Giants that May, before |? couple of men on base. Bobby | growing up in the USSR. newspaper strike upper
Cleveland Manager Al Lopez jhis 20th birthday, did something! came through with a crashing liner | Brundage indulged in some horseplayers, peers and ne
admitted later, took the wind [nobody had ever seen before ON ait) qeepest centre. “poutine” redbaiting, of course esses, were taking their 'tips ae

Cayton in the Daily Worker ne
so happens that Cayton is it
best in the business, an clu
house punters in black bowler
striped trousers, spats and 9? i“
were amazed to find themsely
making money by following Da!
Worker selections. ane
After Cayton gave three be
ers in a row one afternoo? id
$2.80 parley on the three a4

(“The spirit of fun has been bled
from Soviet sports” ete.) but he
also made some interesting ad-
missions. Of the last Olympics
at Helsinki, for instance:

“Some feared that the USSR
would try to use the games as a
sounding board for Red propa-
ganda. Generally, there was con-
cern that the Olympics, dedicat-
ed to a spirit of good fellowship

big league diamond. Realizing as
he ran the impo:sibility of mak-
ing the conventional moves and
getting the runner, when he spear-
ed the ball he whirled around TO
HIS LEFT, making a complete turn
like a discus thrower, and fired the
ball. Instead of having to check
and reverse his momentum, he
pivoted right around and threw
from the momentum.

_out of the Indians’ sails and they

never fully recovered. At first it seemed the only ques-

tion was whether it would make

the seats for a homer or go
through and thump up against the
wall for extra bases. You didn’t
even think of the catch possibility
a; from the high press box you
saw the drive bisect the open
space between left and centre, and
what’s more, curve away from cen-

Not readily remembered now,
after the Giants’ decisive four-
game sweep; is the fact that the
Indians came within a whisker of
winning that first game. It, was
tied 2-2 in the eighth inning when
Larry Doby walked and Al Rosen
singled, and Lefty Don Liddle

came in to replace the tiring- Sal ,

Maglie as the Giants pitcher.

And then Wertz blasted one 450
feet to the running track in front
of the bleacher wall to the right
of centre. Mays took one look, set
sail without ever faltering to
change direction, and took it go-
ing full tilt, back to the plate, one
step from the bleacher fence.

If he hadn't made the catch two
runners ‘would have scored, Wertz
would have been on third with
none out, and the Indians quite
likely would have won in nine inn-
ings instead of losing in 10 — and
who knows how that might have
changed the series.

But the Mays play probably
most talked about is the catch and
throw he made against the Brook-
lyn Dodgers late in 1951.

Billy Cox, who can run, was on
third base in the late innings of
qa tied ball game with one out and
Carl Furillo rapped a line drive
ito right centre. For a moment it
Jooked as if it would go through
the alley for an extra base hit. 3

Then you could see Mays’ speed
and range would get him there,
but of course the run would score
afterward. For Willie, making
the catch in outstretched glove
going full speed to the left, would
hardly have time to check his
momentum and wheel his body
back around in position to throw
and get Cox at home plate.

\. But the rookie. who had just

- .When Cox reached home and
“found the ball in catcher Wes

Westruin’s glove Waiting for him,
he could not believe his eyes.
The throw had come in straight
and true like a strike from the
pitcher’s box! :

Even Willie may never exactly
duplicate that one.

There was another ‘catch, not
too much discussed and written
about, which some. think was real-
ly his best. It was made off Bill
Bruton of the Milwaukee Braves,
the very first batter of a 1954
game at the Polo Grounds in New
York.

Bruton is not a long hitter and
Mays played him shallow, slightly
to left field. The Milwaukee cen-

pitch perfectly and driving the
longest ball of his career way out
to dead centre. spss

Mays caugnt up to the ball and

took it over his shoulder on the
dead run near the steps going
up the clubhouse. He had gone
that far back before, but con-
sidering where he was playing,
the distance he had to uner-
ringly travel, some think this
was IT.

One sports columnist did men-
tion that catch in a column de-
voted to Mays’ top feats, but for
my money he left out the greatest
of them all.

It was at Ebbets Field in Brook-
lyn early in 1952, before , Willie
went into the Army. The Dodg-
| ers sent up Bobby Morgan as a
pinch hitter in a late inning with

trefielder surprised by catching 4

tre as it went, ;

But Mays, off like DiMaggio
at his peak seemingly even be-
fore the crack of the bat, was
devouring space, and
though it wasn’t a high fly but
a blistering fine drive, he seem-
ed to gain on it as it curved away

from him toward the wall. At
the last possible second he
reached forward, took it low,

rolled over the gravel warning
patch and into the wall, and
held onto the ball for the third
out though shaken up and
prone. :

Can Nashua repeat in Kentucky. Derby? |

even

and fair play, might suddenly
explode in dissension and _ ill
feeling,

“These fears proved unjusti-
fied. After moving into a camp
some 12 miles from the city,
along wilth the athletes of other
countries in the Soviet ‘sphere
of influence, the Russians amaz-
ed everyone. with their friendli-
ness and excellent. deportment.

“Russian track athletes visited

the American quarters, and,
through interpreters, discussed
techniques. Russian crewmen

became chummy with the USS.

$862.40), Time reports that aed
conservative gentleman was ost
most overwhelmed. ‘From be
on,” said he, as he tried be “ip
vive himself in the bar, “!™
favor of coexistence.” nit

lm no Cayton, so pleasé va 4
take my selections for the ~ 4,
tucky Derby too seriously: 3,
Nashua.: 2. Summer Ta!
Swaps. 4. Jean’s Joe. .. the

Nashua is the best horse 1) 44.
race, and can outrun all c? will
tion when he wants to. BU" a.
he want to? That's the big
tion. .

Nashua nipped Summer Tan at the wire in the Wood Memorial and collected $100,000 for
ing his last-second lunge which beat the favorite. The tw

Grass Classic (remember what happened to Native

o rivals clash again in the Kentucky D

Dancer) and Nashua is no cinch to finish 1" a
PACIFIC TRIBUNE — MAY 6, 1955 — PAGE ie

make
erby

is
on Saturday, and this time Nashua will be the odds-on choice. But favorites often fail to win the Oo